Dixon Montessori Charter, Dixon CA

Original Research by School Decision on Dixon Montessori Charter

Dixon Montessori Charter sits on North Almond Street in Dixon, a small agricultural town on the eastern edge of Solano County, positioned between Sacramento and the Bay Area along the I-80 corridor. The school is a tuition-free public charter serving kindergarten through eighth grade, and publicly reported information indicates it has recently added a transitional kindergarten entry point for younger children, running a shorter daily schedule than the upper grades. The Montessori model is the defining structural fact here: multi-age classrooms, child-directed pacing, and hands-on materials are characteristic of the approach, and families choosing this school are choosing that philosophy as much as any particular test result.

On state assessments, the picture is mixed but shows a clear pattern worth understanding. In English language arts, the school performs meaningfully better in the middle grades than in the earlier ones. Third through fifth grade ELA proficiency falls in the lower-to-mid range for California, while sixth, seventh, and eighth grade results climb into solidly stronger territory, with the seventh grade standing out as the highest. Math follows a different arc: third grade is the strongest point, fourth and fifth grade dip, and then the middle school grades recover into the mid-range, with eighth grade again the highest. Science results, tested at fifth and eighth grade, show a similar split, with fifth grade weaker and eighth grade more competitive. Across all tested subjects and grades combined, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile relative to districts in Solano County, which is a meaningful position given that county set. A parent should read the grade-level data carefully rather than relying only on the aggregate, because the school's strengths are concentrated in the upper grades. Whether that pattern reflects something about how Montessori methods build over time, or cohort differences, or something else, is a question worth raising directly with the school.

Trend data is limited to a single year of results, so it is not possible to say whether performance is rising, falling, or stable. A parent who wants to understand trajectory should ask the school for its internal data.

The student body is roughly evenly split between Hispanic and white students, with smaller shares of Asian students and students identifying as two or more races. About a quarter of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is a relatively modest economic disadvantage share compared with many California public schools. Data on English learner enrollment and students with IEPs was not available in what was provided.

Admission is by public lottery when applications exceed capacity. A publicly reported charter amendment established that siblings of currently enrolled students receive enrollment priority before new applicants, which matters directly to families planning to enroll multiple children. Founders' children were removed from the preference list in the same amendment.

Dixon itself is a car-dependent small town, largely residential, with a compact historic downtown that hosts a farmers market, weekly concerts, and seasonal events. Housing values run well above the national midpoint but noticeably below the California state average, and the local market has seen a modest softening year over year. The town is on an active residential growth trajectory, with a large master-planned development adding substantial new housing. The school sits near the downtown core, and the surrounding neighborhood is a mix of older established homes and newer subdivisions on the town's edges.

No graduation rate applies here because the school ends at eighth grade. AP courses and dual-enrollment programs are similarly not applicable for a K-8 setting. Civil rights outcome data was not available in what was provided, and the district brief did not surface information about strategic priorities beyond the admissions amendment and the TK expansion.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 357%

School 57% · district not reported

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Grade 432%

School 32% · district not reported

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 539%

School 39% · district not reported

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 648%

School 48% · district not reported

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Grade 747%

School 47% · district not reported

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 860%

School 60% · district not reported

▲ 32 pts above state median · ▲ 37 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 347%

School 47% · district not reported

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 17 pts above county median

Grade 442%

School 42% · district not reported

even with state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Grade 543%

School 43% · district not reported

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 666%

School 66% · district not reported

▲ 22 pts above state median · ▲ 28 pts above county median

Grade 776%

School 76% · district not reported

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 36 pts above county median

Grade 870%

School 70% · district not reported

▲ 26 pts above state median · ▲ 37 pts above county median

Science

Grade 529%

School 29% · district not reported

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 855%

School 55% · district not reported

▲ 29 pts above state median · ▲ 35 pts above county median

This schoolDistrict average, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income47%Higher-income47%1 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income47%Higher-income40%7 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income31%Higher-income49%17 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income36%Higher-income74%38 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income82%Higher-income71%11 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income40%Higher-income64%24 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income20%Higher-income37%17 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income19%Higher-income49%30 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income36%Higher-income51%15 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income35%Higher-income54%18 pp gap